ED(1) COMMAND REFERENCE ED(1)
NAME
ed - text editor
SYNOPSIS
ed [ - ] [ -p[prompt ] [ -q ] [ file ]
DESCRIPTION
Ed is the standard text editor. If the file argument is
given, ed simulates an e command (see below) on the named
file; that is to say, the file is read into ed's buffer so
that it can be edited. The optional - suppresses the
printing of character counts by e, r, and w commands, of
diagnostics from e and q commands, and of the ! prompt after
a !shell command. Ed operates on a copy of the file it is
editing; changes made to the copy have no effect on the file
until a w (write) command is given. The copy of the text
being edited resides in a temporary file called the buffer.
There is only one buffer.
Commands to ed have a simple and regular structure: zero,
one, or two addresses followed by a single-character
command, possibly followed by parameters to that command.
These addresses specify one or more lines in the buffer.
Every command that requires addresses has default addresses,
so that the addresses can very often be omitted.
In general, only one command may appear on a line. Certain
commands allow the input of text. This text is placed in
the appropriate place in the buffer. While ed is accepting
text, it is said to be in input mode. In this mode, no
commands are recognized; all input is merely collected.
Input mode is left by typing a period (.) alone at the
beginning of a line.
Ed supports a limited form of regular expression notation;
regular expressions are used in addresses to specify lines
and in some commands (e.g., s) to specify portions of a line
that are to be substituted. A regular expression (RE)
specifies a set of character strings. A member of this set
of strings is said to be matched by the RE. The REs allowed
by ed are constructed as follows:
The following one-character REs match a single character:
1.1 An ordinary character (not one of those discussed in
1.2 below) is a one-character RE that matches itself.
1.2 A backslash (\) followed by any special character is
a one-character RE that matches the special character
itself. The special characters are:
a. ., *, [, and \ (period, asterisk, left square
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ED(1) COMMAND REFERENCE ED(1)
bracket, and backslash, respectively), which
are always special, except when they appear
within square brackets ([]; see 1.4 below).
b. ^ (caret or circumflex), which is special at
the beginning of an entire RE (see 3.1 and 3.2
below), or when it immediately follows the left
of a pair of square brackets ([]) (see 1.4
below).
c. $ (currency symbol), which is special at the
end of an entire RE (see 3.2 below).
d. The character used to bound (i.e., delimit) an
entire RE, which is special for that RE (for
example, see how slash (/) is used in the g
command, below.)
1.3 A period (.) is a one-character RE that matches any
character except new-line.
1.4 A non-empty string of characters enclosed in square
brackets ([]) is a one-character RE that matches any
one character in that string. If, however, the first
character of the string is a circumflex (^), the
one-character RE matches any character except new-
line and the remaining characters in the string. The
^ has this special meaning only if it occurs first in
the string. The minus (-) may be used to indicate a
range of consecutive ASCII characters; for example,
[0-9] is equivalent to [0123456789]. The - loses
this special meaning if it occurs first (after an
initial ^, if any) or last in the string. The right
square bracket (]) does not terminate such a string
when it is the first character within it (after an
initial ^, if any); e.g., []a-f] matches either a
right square bracket (]) or one of the letters a
through f inclusive. The four characters listed in
1.2.a above stand for themselves within such a string
of characters.
The following rules may be used to construct REs from one-
character REs:
2.1 A one-character RE is a RE that matches whatever the
one-character RE matches.
2.2 A one-character RE followed by an asterisk (*) is a
RE that matches zero or more occurrences of the one-
character RE. If there is any choice, the longest
leftmost string that permits a match is chosen.
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ED(1) COMMAND REFERENCE ED(1)
2.3 A one-character RE followed by \{m\}, \{m,\}, or
\{m,n\} is a RE that matches a range of occurrences
of the one-character RE. The values of m and n must
be non-negative integers less than 256; \{m\} matches
exactly m occurrences; \{m,\} matches at least m
occurrences; \{m,n\} matches any number of
occurrences between m and n inclusive. Whenever a
choice exists, the RE matches as many occurrences as
possible.
2.4 The concatenation of REs is a RE that matches the
concatenation of the strings matched by each
component of the RE.
2.5 A RE enclosed between the character sequences \( and
\) is a RE that matches whatever the unadorned RE
matches.
2.6 The expression \n matches the same string of
characters as was matched by an expression enclosed
between \( and \) earlier in the same RE. Here n is
a digit; the sub-expression specified is that
beginning with the n-th occurrence of \( counting
from the left. For example, the expression
^\(.*\)\1$ matches a line consisting of two repeated
appearances of the same string.
Finally, an entire RE may be constrained to match only an
initial segment or final segment of a line (or both):
3.1 A circumflex (^) at the beginning of an entire RE
constrains that RE to match an initial segment of a
line.
3.2 A currency symbol ($) at the end of an entire RE
constrains that RE to match a final segment of a
line.
The construction ^entire RE$ constrains the entire RE to
match the entire line.
The null RE (e.g., //) is equivalent to the last RE
encountered. See also the last paragraph before FILES
below.
To understand addressing in ed it is necessary to know that
at any time there is a current line. Generally speaking,
the current line is the last line affected by a command; the
exact effect on the current line is discussed under the
description of each command. Addresses are constructed as
follows:
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ED(1) COMMAND REFERENCE ED(1)
1. The character . addresses the current line.
2. The character $ addresses the last line of the
buffer.
3. A decimal number n addresses the n-th line of the
buffer.
4. 'x addresses the line marked with the mark name
character x, which must be a lower-case letter.
Lines are marked with the k command described below.
5. A RE enclosed by slashes (/) addresses the first line
found by searching forward from the line following
the current line toward the end of the buffer and
stopping at the first line containing a string
matching the RE. If necessary, the search wraps
around to the beginning of the buffer and continues
up to and including the current line, so that the
entire buffer is searched. See also the last
paragraph before FILES below.
6. A RE enclosed in question marks (?) addresses the
first line found by searching backward from the line
preceding the current line toward the beginning of
the buffer and stopping at the first line containing
a string matching the RE. If necessary, the search
wraps around to the end of the buffer and continues
up to and including the current line. See also the
last paragraph before FILES below.
7. An address followed by a plus sign (+) or a minus
sign (-) followed by a decimal number specifies that
address plus (respectively minus) the indicated
number of lines. The plus sign may be omitted.
8. If an address begins with + or -, the addition or
subtraction is taken with respect to the current
line; e.g, -5 is understood to mean .-5.
9. If an address ends with + or -, then 1 is added to or
subtracted from the address, respectively. As a
consequence of this rule and of rule 8 immediately
above, the address - refers to the line preceding the
current line. (To maintain compatibility with
earlier versions of the editor, the character ^ in
addresses is entirely equivalent to -.) Moreover,
trailing + and - characters have a cumulative effect,
so -- refers to the current line less 2.
10. For convenience, a comma (,) stands for the address
pair 1,$, while a semicolon (;) stands for the pair
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ED(1) COMMAND REFERENCE ED(1)
.,$.
Commands may require zero, one, or two addresses. Commands
that require no addresses regard the presence of an address
as an error. Commands that accept one or two addresses
assume default addresses when an insufficient number of
addresses is given; if more addresses are given than such a
command requires, the last one(s) are used.
Typically, addresses are separated from each other by a
comma (,). They may also be separated by a semicolon (;).
In the latter case, the current line (.) is set to the first
address, and only then is the second address calculated.
This feature can be used to determine the starting line for
forward and backward searches (see rules 5. and 6. above).
The second address of any two-address sequence must
correspond to a line that follows, in the buffer, the line
corresponding to the first address.
In the following list of ed commands, the default addresses
are shown in parentheses. The parentheses are not part of
the address; they show that the given addresses are the
default.
It is generally illegal for more than one command to appear
on a line. However, any command (except e, f, r, or w) may
be suffixed by l, n or p, in which case the current line is
either listed, numbered or printed, respectively, as
discussed below under the l, n and p commands.
(.)a
<text>
. The append command reads the given text and appends it
after the addressed line; . is left at the last inserted
line, or, if there were none, at the addressed line.
Address 0 is legal for this command: it causes the
``appended'' text to be placed at the beginning of the
buffer. The maximum number of characters that may be
entered from a terminal is 256 per line (including the
newline character).
(.)c
<text>
. The change command deletes the addressed lines, then
accepts input text that replaces these lines; . is left
at the last line input, or, if there were none, at the
first line that was not deleted.
(.,.)d
The delete command deletes the addressed lines from the
buffer. The line after the last line deleted becomes the
current line; if the lines deleted were originally at the
Printed 4/6/89 5
ED(1) COMMAND REFERENCE ED(1)
end of the buffer, the new last line becomes the current
line.
e file
The edit command causes the entire contents of the buffer
to be deleted, and then the named file to be read in; .
is set to the last line of the buffer. If no file name
is given, the currently-remembered file name, if any, is
used (see the f command). The number of characters read
is typed; file is remembered for possible use as a
default file name in subsequent e, r, and w commands. If
file is replaced by !, the rest of the line is taken to
be a shell (sh(1)) command whose output is to be read.
Such a shell command is not remembered as the current
file name. See also DIAGNOSTICS below.
E file
The Edit command is like e, except that the editor does
not check to see if any changes have been made to the
buffer since the last w command.
f file
file is given, the file-name command changes the
currently-remembered file name to file; otherwise, it
prints the currently-remembered file name.
(1,$)g/RE/command list
In the global command, the first step is to mark every
line that matches the given RE. Then, for every such
line, the given command list is executed with . initially
set to that line. A single command or the first of a
list of commands appears on the same line as the global
command. All lines of a multi-line list except the last
line must be ended with a \; a, i, and c commands and
associated input are permitted; the . terminating input
mode may be omitted if it would be the last line of the
command list. An empty command list is equivalent to the
p command. The g, G, v, and V commands are not permitted
in the command list. See also BUGS and the last
paragraph before FILES below.
(1,$)G/RE/
In the interactive Global command, the first step is to
mark every line that matches the given RE. Then, for
every such line, that line is printed, . is changed to
that line, and any one command (other than one of the a,
c, i, g, G, v, and V commands) may be input and is
executed. After the execution of that command, the next
marked line is printed, and so on; a new-line acts as a
null command; an & causes the re-execution of the most
recent command executed within the current invocation of
G. Note that the commands input as part of the execution
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ED(1) COMMAND REFERENCE ED(1)
of the G command may address and affect any lines in the
buffer. The G command can be terminated by an interrupt
signal (ASCII DEL or BREAK).
h The help command gives a short error message that
explains the reason for the most recent ? diagnostic.
H The Help command causes ed to enter a mode in which error
messages are printed for all subsequent ? diagnostics.
It will also explain the previous ? if there was one.
The H command alternately turns this mode on and off; it
is initially off.
(.)i
<text>
. The insert command inserts the given text before the
addressed line; . is left at the last inserted line, or,
if there were none, at the addressed line. This command
differs from the a command only in the placement of the
input text. Address 0 is not legal for this command.
The maximum number of characters that may be entered from
a terminal is 256 per line (including the newline
character).
(.,.+1)j
The join command joins contiguous lines by removing the
appropriate new-line characters. If exactly one address
is given, this command does nothing.
(.)kx
The mark command marks the addressed line with name x,
which must be a lower-case letter. The address 'x then
addresses this line; . is unchanged.
(.,.)l
The list command prints the addressed lines in an
unambiguous way: non-printing characters are printed in
octal, except for backspace, which is printed as '-',
backspace, '<', and tab, which is printed as '-',
backspace, '>'. Long lines are folded. An l command may
be appended to any other command other than e, f, r, or
w.
(.,.)ma
The move command repositions the addressed line(s) after
the line addressed by a. Address 0 is legal for a and
causes the addressed line(s) to be moved to the beginning
of the file; it is an error if address a falls within the
range of moved lines; . is left at the last line moved.
(.,.)n
The number command prints the addressed lines, preceding
Printed 4/6/89 7
ED(1) COMMAND REFERENCE ED(1)
each line by its line number and a tab character; . is
left at the last line printed. The n command may be
appended to any other command other than e, f, r, or w.
(.,.)p
The print command prints the addressed lines; . is left
at the last line printed. The p command may be appended
to any other command other than e, f, r, or w; for
example, dp deletes the current line and prints the new
current line.
P The editor will prompt with a * for all subsequent
commands. The P command alternately turns this mode on
and off; it is initially off.
q The quit command causes ed to exit. No automatic write
of a file is done (but see DIAGNOSTICS below).
Q The editor exits without checking if changes have been
made in the buffer since the last w command.
($)r file
The read command reads in the given file after the
addressed line. If no file name is given, the
currently-remembered file name, if any, is used (see e
and f commands). The currently-remembered file name is
not changed unless file is the very first file name
mentioned since ed was invoked. Address 0 is legal for r
and causes the file to be read at the beginning of the
buffer. If the read is successful, the number of
characters read is typed; . is set to the last line read
in. If file is replaced by !, the rest of the line is
taken to be a shell (sh(1)) command whose output is to be
read. For example, "$r !ls" appends a listing of the
current directory to the end of the file being edited.
Such a shell command is not remembered as the current
file name.
s The substitute command searches each addressed line for
an occurrence of the specified RE. substitute commands
take the form: (.,.)s/ RE / replacement /
or
(.,.)s/ RE / replacement /g In each line in which a match
is found, all (non-overlapped) matched strings are
replaced by the replacement if the global replacement
indicator g appears after the command. If the global
indicator does not appear, only the first occurrence of
the matched string is replaced. It is an error for the
substitution to fail on all addressed lines. Any
character other than space or new-line may be used
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ED(1) COMMAND REFERENCE ED(1)
instead of / to delimit the RE and the replacement; . is
left at the last line on which a substitution occurred.
See also the last paragraph before FILES below.
An ampersand (&) appearing in the replacement is replaced
by the string matching the RE on the current line. The
special meaning of & in this context may be suppressed by
preceding it by \. As a more general feature, the
characters \n, where n is a digit, are replaced by the
text matched by the n-th regular subexpression of the
specified RE enclosed between \( and \). When nested
parenthesized subexpressions are present, n is determined
by counting occurrences of \( starting from the left.
When the character % is the only character in the
replacement, the replacement used in the most recent
substitute command is used as the replacement in the
current substitute command. The % loses its special
meaning when it is in a replacement string of more than
one character or is preceded by a \.
A line may be split by substituting a new-line character
into it. The new-line in the replacement must be escaped
by preceding it by \. Such substitution cannot be done
as part of a g or v command list.
(.,.)ta
This command acts just like the m command, except that a
copy of the addressed lines is placed after address a
(which may be 0); . is left at the last line of the copy.
u The undo command nullifies the effect of the most recent
command that modified anything in the buffer, namely the
most recent a, c, d, g, i, j, m, r, s, t, v, G, or V
command.
(1,$)v/RE/command list
This command is the same as the global command g except
that the command list is executed with . initially set to
every line that does not match the RE.
(1,$)V/RE/
This command is the same as the interactive global
command G except that the lines that are marked during
the first step are those that do not match the RE.
(1,$)w file
The write command writes the addressed lines into the
named file. If the file does not exist, it is created
with mode 666 (readable and writable by everyone), unless
your umask setting (see sh(1sh)) dictates otherwise. The
currently-remembered file name is not changed unless file
is the very first file name mentioned since ed was
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ED(1) COMMAND REFERENCE ED(1)
invoked. If no file name is given, the currently-
remembered file name, if any, is used (see e and f
commands); . is unchanged. If the command is successful,
the number of characters written is typed. If file is
replaced by !, the rest of the line is taken to be a
shell (sh(1)) command whose standard input is the
addressed lines. Such a shell command is not remembered
as the current file name.
($)=
The line number of the addressed line is typed; . is
unchanged by this command.
!shell command
The remainder of the line after the ! is sent to the UTek
System shell (sh(1)) to be interpreted as a command.
Within the text of that command, the unescaped character
% is replaced with the remembered file name; if a !
appears as the first character of the shell command, it
is replaced with the text of the previous shell command.
Thus, !! will repeat the last shell command. If any
expansion is performed, the expanded line is echoed; . is
unchanged.
(.+1)<new-line>
An address alone on a line causes the addressed line to
be printed. A new-line alone is equivalent to .+1p; it
is useful for stepping forward through the buffer.
If an interrupt signal (ASCII DEL or BREAK) is sent, ed
prints a ? and returns to its command level.
Some size limitations: 512 characters per line, 256
characters per global command list, and 128K characters in
the buffer. The limit on the number of lines depends on the
amount of user memory: each line takes 1 word.
When reading a file, ed discards ASCII NUL characters and
all characters after the last new-line. Files (e.g., a.out)
that contain characters not in the ASCII set (bit 8 on)
cannot be edited by ed.
If the closing delimiter of a RE or of a replacement string
(e.g., /) would be the last character before a new-line,
that delimiter may be omitted, in which case the addressed
line is printed. The following pairs of commands are
equivalent:
s/s1/s2 s/s1/s2/p
g/s1 q/s1/p
?s1 ?s1?
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ED(1) COMMAND REFERENCE ED(1)
OPTIONS
- Suppresses the printing of character counts by e, r, and
w commands, of diagnostics from e and q commands, and of
the ! prompt after a !shell command.
-h Turns on help mode. See the description of the H command.
-p[prompt]
Causes the specified prompt to be printed when ed has
finished with a command and is waiting for the next one.
If no prompt is specified, '*' is used. Without the -p
option, no prompting is done.
-q Allows the signal SIGQUIT (normally generated by the
character ^\) to terminate the edit session, and turns
off the - option. Normally, SIGQUIT is ignored.
FILES
/tmp/e$$ Temporary; $$ is the process number
ed.hup Work is saved here if the terminal is hung up
DIAGNOSTICS
? For command errors.
?filename For an inaccessible file.
(Use the help and Help commands for detailed
explanations).
If changes have been made in the buffer since the last w
command that wrote the entire buffer, ed warns the user if
an attempt is made to destroy ed's buffer via the e or q
commands: it prints ? and allows one to continue editing. A
second e or q command at this point will take effect. The -
command-line option inhibits this feature.
VARIABLES
HOME The user's home directory. Upon abnormal
termination of ed , a file called ed.hup is
placed in this directory."
SHELL The user's login shell. Used for shell
escapes.
RETURN VALUE
[NOERRS]
[NP_WARN] An error warranting a warning message
occurred. Execution continues.
[NP_ERR] An error occurred that was not a system
error. Execution terminated.
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ED(1) COMMAND REFERENCE ED(1)
CAVEATS
A ! command cannot be subject to a g or a v command.
The ! command and the ! escape from the e, r, and w commands
cannot be used if the the editor is invoked from a
restricted shell (see lsh(1sh)).
The sequence \n in a RE does not match a new-line character.
The l command mishandles DEL.
Characters are masked to 7 bits on input.
SEE ALSO
grep(1), red(1), sed(1), sh(1sh), and stty(1).
Printed 4/6/89 12
%%index%%
na:192,68;
sy:260,216;
de:476,2881;3621,3022;6907,2985;10156,2908;13328,2728;16320,3212;19796,2832;22892,2932;26088,3372;29724,2560;
op:32548,976;
fi:33524,192;
di:33716,769;
va:34485,392;
rv:34877,358;
ca:35499,497;
se:35996,214;
%%index%%000000000264